News – Page 31 – Stately Play

From the “news you already know” file, both Smash Up and Cottage Garden due tomorrow

October 11, 2017 David Neumann 13

iOS, Android, PC/Mac • Although I’ve been diagnosed with chronic depression since I was eight years-old, it still sneaks up on me sometimes. Yesterday was just such a day. It started like any other, but quickly turned into a muddy mess which ended up with me laying in bed and staring at the ceiling instead of plucking away at my keyboard. Sorry about that, everyone. I’ve been working to ensure it doesn’t happen very often (or, hopefully, ever) but things change and I’m not quite there yet. That said, it will not be a regular occurrence. Of course, big news always seems to pop up when I’m not around. For example, yesterday’s posts should have been announcing two big stories, both of which you’ve, by now, probably heard. If you haven’t, however, tomorrow is going to be a big day for board game ports as both Smash Up and Cottage Garden are set to arrive on the App Store.

Age of Rivals set to expand

October 9, 2017 David Neumann 2

iOS, Android, PC/Mac • Oh, Age of Rivals. You were our Through the Ages before we had digital Through the Ages. You were our 7 Wonders before…well, you’re still our 7 Wonders and will likely always be. You were the surprise card game of our summer, only falling behind other releases because we learned everything you had to share. That is, we ran out of new cards to unlock. Roboto Games is set to reignite our addiction, however, with the Conflict of Fate update which should be landing on the App Store very soon.

Hoplite saved from extinction, now 64-bit

October 6, 2017 David Neumann 0

Back in Pocket Tactics‘ glory days, one of my favorite writers over there was Clancy. He was a lot like Owen, but without the snark. Or, I should say, a different type of snark, but he knew what the hell he was talking about and shared that info with aplomb. His reviews were delights, with one of my faves being for the roguelike-puzzle gem, Hoplite. Not only did Clancy give it 5-stars but, behind the scenes, he nearly convinced Owen that it was GOTY material. This in a year that saw both FTL and XCOM: Enemy Unknown land on the App Store. Even with that competition he wasn’t too far off. 2014 was a fantastic year for gaming, and all three of those titles remain on my iPad. Hoplite took a little vacation from the App Store the past few weeks but, yesterday, rose from the ashes with a brand new 64-bit version ready to conquer iOS 11.

Prepare to get Smashed next week

October 5, 2017 David Neumann 9

iOS, Android, Steam • It wouldn’t be a complete week without at least a little bit of news out of the Asmodee Digital camp. Last week they released two games, Ticket to Ride: First Journey and Harald. This week is a bit more subdued. This week they’re merely announcing a huge release coming next week. It’s Smash Up, the wacky card game of amazing mix-ups, which is totally not the actual tagline for the game; I just came up with it on my own. That said, it’s pretty great, so if you need any PR guys, AEG, give me a call.

Steve Jackson’s classic Ogre comes to Steam

October 5, 2017 David Neumann 5

PC • The original Ogre was designed by Steve Jackson way back in 1977, nearly 25 years before his own publishing company would become synonymous with a little card game called Munchkin. It’s had several editions since it’s days with long lost publisher, Metagaming Concepts, culminating in a ridiculously gigantic new edition (seriously, this thing weighs in at over 30 pounds) funded a few years ago, with the sixth edition hitting shelves in 2016. Part of the Ogre revival includes a digital version which was just released for PC.

What the hell has Asmodee done now?

September 29, 2017 David Neumann 0

iOS Universal, Android, PC/Mac • We started Monday by learning that Asmodee Digital would be releasing a kid-oriented version of Ticket to Ride on the App Store later in the week. What they didn’t tell us was they’d be releasing another game as well, Harald: A Game of Influence. Not a peep. Not this week, not at Gen Con, not ever. What the hell is Harald and why is Asmodee keeping it under wraps?

Asmodee focuses on the littlest gamers with Ticket to Ride: First Journey

September 28, 2017 David Neumann 9

iOS, Android, PC/Mac • Not sure how relevant Asmodee Digital‘s latest title will be for most of the Stately Players out there, but I’m guessing at least a few of you have kids. Little kids. I’m talking preschool, kindergarten, maybe 1st-2nd grade. You know, little kids. Their latest release is a digital version of Ticket to Ride: First Journey and if you’re thinking it’s basically Ticket to Ride for kids you’d be right, especially if you’re thinking it’s for little kids.

Pathfinder Adventures expands, slashes prices

September 26, 2017 David Neumann 15

iOS, Android, PC/Mac • Last night an update arrived for our beloved, yet seemingly beleaguered, Pathfinder Adventures. The update brought more content, which is good, but also completely changed prices for IAP in the mobile version, which is good news too, I think? I don’t know, the future of Pathfinder has seemed foggy since Obsidian wrapped up the Rise of the Runelords campaign, and changing their pricing and whatnot at this point seems like a bad sign that, maybe, Pathfinder isn’t doing as good as Obsidian or their new overlord, Asmodee, had hoped. Or maybe I’m full of crap. It’s happened in the past, and I definitely have no insight into what’s going on in the darkened back rooms of Obsidian. With that in mind, let’s focus on what we do know about, the latest Pathfinder Adventures update.

XCOM: Enemy Within joins the ranks of 64-bit apps

September 22, 2017 David Neumann 10

iOS Universal, Android, PC/Mac/Linux • The past couple of weeks have been tough ones for me, but this hardship has been completely of my own devising. Instead of going to sleep at a remotely decent time, I’ve been staying up well past 2am nearly every night playing War of the Chosen, the new expansion for XCOM 2. While we’re unlikely to ever see the XCOM sequel on our tablets, there is good news in mobile-land for XCOM fans: XCOM: Enemy Within was just updated to comply with iOS 11’s 64-bit requirement.

The Witness puzzles its way onto the App Store

September 21, 2017 David Neumann 6

iOS Universal, PC/Mac • It’s been a long time since we’ve had a pure puzzle game worth talking about land on the App Store. The Witness, Jonathan Blow‘s puzzle opus, almost fits. It’s definitely a puzzle game, but it’s also big, beautiful, and mysterious. It feels like there’s much more to do than just solving the maze-like puzzles, but when you get down to it, there really isn’t. It’s kind of weird, but I keep loading it up and exploring the world so there must be something there.